A Peek Into The Market Before The Trading Starts - Broadwind (NASDAQ:BWEN), GE Aero (NYSE:GE)

Pre-open movers

US stock futures are higher this morning, as investors are awaiting housing data. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 72 points to 14,542.00 and S&P 500 index futures rose 8.20 points to 1,555.80. Nasdaq 100 futures gained 19 points to 2,787.25.

A Peek Into Global Markets

European markets were higher today. The STOXX Europe 600 Index rose 0.84%, London's FTSE 100 Index gained 0.69%, French CAC 40 Index surged 0.69% and German DAX 30 index rose 0.91%. Asian markets ended mostly higher, with Japan's Nikkei Stock Average surging 1.89%, China's Shanghai Composite dropping 0.11% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rising 0.66%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.14% and India's Sensex gained 0.96%.

Broker Recommendation

Analysts at JP Morgan downgraded General Electric Company

from “overweight” to “neutral.” The target price for General Electric has been lowered from $24 to $22. GE shares fell 0.46% to $21.65 in pre-market trading.

Breaking news

Hasbro HAS reported upbeat first-quarter results. To read the full news, click here.
Rentech RTK today announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a new share repurchase program for up to $25 million of the Company's outstanding common stock. To read the full news, click here.
LivePerson LPSN today announced a distribution partnership with Vixia, Inc., a leading interactive digital marketing company based in Tokyo, to expand its Asia-Pacific presence and jointly promote LivePerson's online engagement solutions to the Japanese market. To read the full news, click here.
Broadwind Energy BWEN today announced the sale of its idle tower plant in Brandon, SD. Proceeds from the sale, net of closing costs, totaled approximately $11.7 million. To read the full news, click here.

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